"Arrange what pieces come your way." - Virgina Wolfe﻿

Pictured above are naturally dyed silks to be sewn into costumes for the upcoming short film, Future Cosmos Flow,
produced and directed by Fuchsia Lin. Image courtesy of Fuchsia Lin.

Last week we learned a bit about water usage in the making of a t-shirt,
how our thoughts and words can influence water molecules,
and were introduced to the beautiful and compelling work of Fuchsia's Crystals of Transformation.

Now let's go a little further.
Hang on to your hats, for this 2 minute clip is quite sobering.
​

Thank you to the creators of River Blue
for helping us learn and acknowledge the problems we face.
Please condider these issues when purchasing new items.
Is is really needed?
Are there better options?

There are indeed safer ways of creating beautiful fabrics and
Fibershed is a great resource for learning more.
Creating dye from flowers and plants is a time-honored tradition,
​as you will see in this next video.

Not just for landscaping or bouquets!
Flowers are also fantastic dye.
Pictured here is foxglove, among others, from the artist,
Monica Paz Soldan of Tiny Textiles.
Monica happens to be one of Fibershed's first official artisan producers and worked with Fuchsia to create custom hand-dyed organic silksfor Crystals of Transformation.Read more about her work and connect here.
Photo courtesy of Fuchsia Lin.

As promised last week, more conversation
with Fuchsia on her upcoming project:
Future Cosmos Flow.This interview with the lovely and talented Susannah Mars for Artslandiawill shed more light on this beautiful project which you can help be part of!Please enjoy these beautiful photos while you listen.

Head piece for Future Cosmos Flow in process. Image courtesy of Fuchsia Lin as well as the following images.

Please take this into consideration when getting rid of t-shirts and
when purchasing new ones.
A little tricky, since we like to commemorate special events with t-shirts:
concerts, marathons, conferences, vacation souvenirs, and for professing sports allegiances.
Keep your t-shirts looking good longer by line-drying them.
Mend tears and holes.
Cannibalize old t-shirts creatively: t-shirt quilts, rags, accessories,
More ideas and resources at the Styleposium Pinterest page.
See boards "Garment Care & Maintenance"
and "Embellish/Repair."

Images from Fashion Revolution.org

Part II

The above video is a good introduction to the work of
Dr. Masaru Emoto.
Truly astounding and awesome.
I think of it often. Thank you to my friend and colleague, Fuchsia Lin for introducing me to Emoto's work.

Part III

From left to right: Detail of dye garden. Dyed organic silk yardage. First fitting with Andrea.
The above images are copyright and courtesy of Fuchsia Lin.

Speaking of my friend and fellow costume designer,
I'd like to introduce you to Fuchsia Lin.
Fuchsia has been a great inspiration to me on many levels and
I'm pleased to share her work with you today.
Below is a trailer for the first installation of her dance film trilogy,
Crystals of Transformation.
It screens at NW Film Center in Portland, OR on
Wednesday, 26 July
at 7;00pmTickets and info click here.

Native Fashion Now is a book and a traveling exhibit of contemporary Native fashion designers.
Currently the exhibit is in Tulsa, OK
at Philbrook Museum of Art
and will run through the first week of 2017.

​The exhibit moves on to NYC and will be at
​the National Museum of the American Indian
February 17 - September 4, 2017

Beyond Buckskin
is a wonderful resource
for Native fashion and is run
by Jessica R. Metcalfe, a contributor to the aforementioned Native Fashion Now.

Not unlike B.Yellowtail Collective,
when you shop Beyond Buckskin
​you are supporting individual Native makers,
not larger corporations
who have ripped off
traditional designs.
​

Speaking of rip-offs and cultural appropriation, we were surprised to hear the story of the Seminole nation collaborating with Florida State University to create imagery and rituals that celebrate the tribe.
Learn more below:

The Seams Podcast has many more interesting stories
at the intersection of
culture, identity, and clothing.
​Tune in at www.theseams.org

That concludes this week's edition of Styleposium!
Catch you next Monday.
Until then, you know where to find us:

This past Thursday began Hispanic* Heritage Month. The event runs through October 15and is really a celebration of all Latin culture.

*Note: Although it's technically called Hispanic Heritage Month, there is a movement to rename the event to reflect a more inclusive and accurate portrayal of the complex history and diverse group of nations that are lumped intoone category in one month.More details about this can be read here.

We can get behind that and moving forward we will refer to Hispanic Heritage Month asLatin Heritage Month.

It's also calming for me,because it also makes you slow down and stopand think about what you're doing.

I'm the kind of person that needs to have that: to calm down and enjoy the process.

It took me years to understand that I had to enjoy the process of what I was doing,not the outcome at the time....outcome was, in the end, you know, it was the bonus.

See you next week for more inspiring and educational stories on the clothes we wear.Plenty more where that came from at all the usual places.​Have a great week& Arrange What Pieces Come Your Way.Style is for Everyone!